The man admitted transporting 162 sub-Saharan migrants on 24 journeys between Irun in Spain and Bayonne, since December last year.
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The migrant smuggler arrested on Friday after hitting two police vehicles in Bayonne (Pyrénées-Atlantiques) was sentenced to four years in prison on Monday January 17 by the criminal court, reports France Bleu Pays Basque. He was in pre-trial detention and was tried in immediate appearance. The court followed the prosecutor’s submissions. One thousand five hundred euros were awarded to the three police officers for moral damage and 1,000 euros more for the police officer who was injured.
The 49-year-old man from Hendaye had tried to flee from the police in Bayonne when he had just dropped off fifteen illegal immigrants. He ran into officials and crashed into a police car. A policewoman was slightly injured.
The man admitted transporting 162 sub-Saharan migrants on 24 journeys between Irun in Spain and Bayonne, since December last year.
Before the court, he indicates that he acted in “a purely humanitarian purpose”. The man, who is both a goat and sheep breeder in Béhobie and a carpenter in Hendaye, explained that he had given his mobile phone number to migrants living near the Red Cross in Irun, and that since “they pass the number.”
“They hurt me and I never ask for money”, he explained. The accused has already been convicted in the past for acts of the same nature. His lawyer had pleaded for release, considering that“there cannot be criminal proceedings if there has been no consideration for the residence aid.”